Connecticut western news., 1887-03-30
CREMATION IN ALASKA.
Curious Gust oms that Follow Death Why the Bodies Burn We'll
From the Alaska Free PresS.1


 Having had information the other day of a cremation to sakeplace at the Indian village, I went to the beach to witness 1t. The defrlnct siwash was known around Janeau as Frank, and was for merly employed at Martin Bros store in the capacity of Indian clerk, and the klockman Git being double cremation of one of each sex) had been called Jen- nie; both, as 1t happened, having died of consumption. The mourning service consisted of the ancient ceremony known as ''potlatch," which is always custom ary among the Indians of southeastern Alaska on the occasion of a death of one of their number. The potlatch is a division of whatever temporal goods the deceased may have possessed, such as blankets, dry goods, &c., among his or her relations, according as the merits of each individual case may justify.
 In the services of the mourning, which are very long, and to the Indian mind very impressive, the first in the order of the davis a eulogistic discourse by one of the old men, which, being delivered by him in sections, so to speak, is taken p and sung by the rest in monotonous sort of chant: the old man is then super seded by another venerable buck, who goes through the same service, and he in turn by another, until all the old men have had their individual say. The chanters keep time by humping on the floor with sticks and beating on drum. This performance being gone over for day or two, the potlatch takes place.
 The body of the deceased is first wrap ped in mating, woven from split roots, and in appearance resembling coarse straw. They then convey the body to the place of cremation, which Is always on the beach at high-water mark. On this occasion they had on hand for the purpose of burning the two bsdies, about one cord of wood, some split and some in small logs. First platform of small logs is laid foot from the ground, and space of four inches between each log. On this pyre, which was about seven feet long by five feet wide, the two bodies were placed, about three feet ap t, and around them a miniature log hut was built to height of four feet; the enc osed space is then carefully filled in with split wood and fine kinding, and now, everything being in readiness, 1 the fire is lighted from the bottom. The native diet being chiefly salmon, an oily | substance, the bodies of the Indians seem to contain considerable amount of oil, as they burn very readily. While 1 the corpses were charring, the friends of the deceased continued to poke them with long sticks, occasionally raking the fragments of burnt flesh from the fire and wrapping them in skins, blankets, &c. Returning from the cremation of the two natives, heard singing in na- tive house, and dropped in to see what was going on.
 'There was quite an assemhlage of na- tives squatted around small fire in the centre of the room, and at one end of the house the corpse of an old woman ] lay, covered with sheet and blankets. All around the room was strung up muslin, pieces of calico, and a few blan- kets: also three umbrellas, etc., all oi which will be distributed among the relatives and near friends. Then the process described above will be gone through.